China: Scores killed in pair of quakes

CHINA

Associated Press

Updated
11:37 pm PDT, Friday, September 7, 2012

Beijing --

Twin earthquakes and a spate of aftershocks struck southwestern China on Friday, toppling thousands of houses and sending boulders cascading across roads. At least 80 people were killed and hundreds injured in the remote mountainous area, and more than 100,000 residents were evacuated.

Damage was preventing rescuers from reaching outlying towns, and communications were disrupted after the midday quakes hit along the borders of Guizhou and Yunnan provinces, a rural region where some of China's poorest people live.

The first 5.6-magnitude quake struck just before 11:30 a.m. and was followed by an equally strong quake shortly after noon, joined by dozens of aftershocks. Though of moderate strength, the quakes were shallow, which often causes more damage.

Hardest hit was Yiliang County, where all but one of the deaths occurred, according to the Yunnan provincial government's official website. Another 730 people in the area were injured. Yiliang's high population density, shoddy building construction and propensity for landslides were blamed for the relatively high death toll.

Though quakes occur in the area frequently, buildings in rural areas and China's fast-growing smaller cities and towns are often constructed poorly.